For the last 12 years I have walked past a lithograph outside my office, titled ‘Bungalows’! It’s an amazingly accurate representation of what typical houses in the Chicago neighborhoods and surrounding suburbs have looked like for at least 80 years. All lined up in a row, proud evidence of blue collar America, they are modest, brick structures, usually with a well-worn stoop for the evening ritual of sitting and jawing with the neighbors. I thank Terry McDermott, my CEO predecessor and colleague, for pointing the piece out to me (Terry is a Chicago area native like me).

As they say, it ‘speaks to me’ but not in the way you might have thought. While there is joy in appreciating the artist’s skill and interpretative soul – for me, it’s a daily reminder evoking a degree of melancholy bordering on the bittersweet.

If that seems a bit overly dramatic or an odd thing to say (after all it’s just a painting), indulge me long enough to explain. For your patience, I will offer some insight as to what has led to my spending the majority of my working career at the National Association of REALTORS®.

I grew up in Calumet City, a 20 mile drive straight south from downtown Chicago, sharing the Illinois/Indiana border with Hammond, Indiana. In the 40’s, it was referred to as Sin City of the Midwest, apparently for some rather liberal entertainment establishments along the state line that exist to this day. And yet, I thought it was ‘Leave it to Beaver-town’. It was not a particularly diverse place what with 80% of the population being Polish. Every corner had a neighborhood bar, not a Pub, not a Diner – a Bar. The last time they counted how many bars there were ‘back in the day’ it exceeded 125, which is a lot of bars for any town, let alone one of 20,000 people. Cal City as it’s referred to, was in the heart of steel mill country. When you graduated from high school, you could count on a decent paying job in ‘the mills’. Less than 10% of my graduating class were fortunate enough or interested enough to attend college. And so it went – athletic enough to get a basketball scholarship, I went away to school to return home five years later (yes I transferred once so it took every bit of five years) degree in hand. What did I do – you guessed it – I went to work in the mills. U.S. Steel to be exact. South Works to be precise. Accounting turned out to be my aptitude so ‘bean counter’ it was. Literally dozens of my old classmates had a five year head start on me and were marching their way up the steel workers union hourly pay scale as pipefitters, journeymen, electricians, furnace operators, shippers, crane operators, defect inspectors, grinders, and day laborers. Proud, hardworking people, they were always on the lookout for another shift so they could make a mortgage payment or buy their kids some clothes. Living paycheck to paycheck was a way of life. After your shift was over, it was time to engage in a maniacally religious experience known as sixteen inch softball (no glove’s please). A hotly contended scrum every night all summer long, it always ended with the inevitable trip across the street for a Schlitz or an Old Style. Archie Bunker had nothing on us. Those WERE the days!

A half dozen years later, in the middle of the sideburns and disco era, I felt the itch to take my bean counting ability elsewhere (I must admit I had been hearing the rumors of the Japanese dumping steel and putting tremendous pressure on the US steel makers to cut costs). Lucky enough to have a few options, I had a degree and six years experience – I landed at Memorex Corporation, some 40 miles away in the western suburbs. My childhood friends were not so lucky. On one day alone in 1979, they announced the closure of the South Works plant, immediately putting 10,000 people out of work. What followed was predictable and disturbing – many of my friends lost their homes very quickly (yes, those very bungalows) and as if aliens had swept them into the stars, they were gone almost overnight. I never saw them again. To this day I wonder what happened to them. As you might expect, the energy and hopes of a region kicked in the teeth reeled from the loss. The neighborhoods deteriorated. Rows of homes fell into disrepair, and Calumet City, although to this day still valiantly trying to make a go of it, was never the same.

Then what can only be described as ‘serendipity’ to the highest degree – I came to NAR as the Director of Accounting. And I discovered that most precious of career granting gifts – a reason to come to work. And so every day, for 36 years, 12 as the NAR CEO, I have been lucky to be part of the largest dream making and dream saving machine the world has ever known – organized real estate and REALTORS®. I have been blessed to work with the very best Realtors® the world has to offer, legends and icons of an industry with a rich storied history.

Confessions are easiest when you have little to lose – So, as I close this chapter of my life, I sheepishly confess – I used you – I used you to help me feel like I was doing ‘good’. The work of the Staff and Volunteers of NAR and every State and Local Association and MLS Executive is ‘noble work’. It means something to put someone in a home, or even better in my case, to help save someone’s home. So on behalf of my many friends back home who I’ve stayed in touch with and to those I never saw again but for whom I still think of fondly, and to all of you with whom I’ve had the privilege of spending almost four decades – thank you for giving me a reason to get up in the morning and instilling the belief in me that each of us really can make a difference. And today, July 31, 2017, as I pass that painting for the last time, the bitter sweetness will at last be replaced with the knowledge that I tried my hardest, I felt deeply about my job, and the ultimate consolation that Webster’s dictionary still today defines ‘Realtor®’ as a member of the National Association of Realtors®!

B to B or Business to Business is sometimes used as shorthand for related entities or industry partners cooperating on a menu of products or services. It is an ‘intra’ concept as opposed to B to C Business to Consumer (inter) relationship. To my mind, the ultimate B to B structure inside organized real estate is the triangulated relationship between Brokers/Agents, the MLS community, and NAR (all 3 levels). There are even B to B relationships within this pyramid that have worked together for decades. There is the Broker/Agent to NAR connection, there is the Broker/Agent to MLS connection, and there is the NAR to MLS connection. It is this last connection that I’d like to spend a bit of time discussing and in the process, perhaps posit an opinion that the ties that bind us and the opportunities to strengthen our unity are more prevalent now than ever.

As a starting point, allow me to recap or catalogue some past successes we have had together, as a way of suggesting this B to B relationship is stronger than some might think.

For 25 plus years, NAR has been a consistent sponsor of CMLS events even way back when the meetings were in the Northwest and they seemed to only be able to attract 50-75 participants. Ann Bailey and I always talked about the seeds of collaboration being planted way back then even if it took a fair amount of time for the orchard to mature. Thanks to some recent very strong, forward thinking MLS leadership actions to create a standalone, membership based legal entity and the hiring of a top executive, Denee Evans, there are considerably more attendees (members)now and CMLS has really come into its own. Simply put, this progress is very significant and needs to be acknowledged and nurtured.

Twenty plus years ago NAR started a thing called RETS, the Real Estate Transaction Standards, with me (the lay person) and seven really knowledgeable and committed industry veterans from Top Producer, Wildfyre, etc…. and one of the preeminent MLS executives in the country, Peter Shuttleworth. His early contributions to developing the ‘transport mechanism’, much of which is still in use, was exemplary. NAR, in kind, has been donating open source software to RETS for many years.

In late 2009, we worked with RESO Chairman, Pat Bybee (she’s still missed very much), to morph RETS into a more expanded and inclusive MLS and Vendor universe eventuating in the incorporation of RESO as the umbrella organization that exists today.

Then came CIVIX and an appeal from Ann Bailey on behalf of the MLS community for NAR to attempt a negotiation which would bring this dangerous and potentially catastrophic threat to settlement. Thanks to Ann and General Counsel Laurie Janik, we were able to put this one behind us, saving MLS’s many millions of dollars.

About three or four years ago I hosted a meeting in Chicago of several key MLS executives who were requesting that NAR loosen some of the controls around the RETS/RESO process and in exchange they promised to deliver a more actively engaged and interested MLS community. They kept their promise and we kept ours – and out of that has evolved a more vibrant RESO – today’s standards setting group which has grown by leaps and bounds and consists of the best and brightest MLS, Vendor, Brokerage and Association technologists.

Not long ago, NAR stepped up and partnered with our colleagues in the Canadian Association to fund the capture of the MLS ‘domain name’ to protect the brand lest it fall into unfriendly hands.

Then because of helpful feedback from MLS executives that NAR might better understand their point of view if we had someone on staff who came from an MLS background and could advocate for MLS’s – we agreed and added a headcount and hired Caitlin McCrory to do just that.

Valuing and desiring even more feedback, NAR Leadership has been meeting with MLS industry leaders for the past several years and a new, fresher, open dialogue has been achieved. So much so that we signed the NAR/CMLS cooperative agreement last year which put a number of MLS Executives on NAR committees and has opened up a whole new channel for communication and cooperation. This past May, CMLS leadership were invited to attend the NAR Executive Committee meeting to provide an update and were sincerely ‘lauded’ for their esprit de’corp and collegiality.

For the past two years our Realtor Party team has been reaching out to MLS’s to contribute to our Corporate Advocacy Funding Program and the response has been overwhelming with more than $1 million pledged and received.

Whether you’ve come to see it this way or not, RPR too was hoped to be an important (B to B) example of cooperation between NAR, RPR, and the MLS and Vendor communities. It has taken several years longer to achieve the critical mass necessary to demonstrate its ongoing value, but more importantly, we continue to offer up RPR as a great potential partner for what may come or be needed in the future. The fact is we now have 701 licensing agreements with MLS’s and 25 CIE’s (Commercial Information Exchanges), and we will never do anything to violate or otherwise harm those hard fought arrangements. We appreciate every one of those MLS Partners whether they were first or last, and whether they are complimentary or critical.

One of the first things Alex Lange did after coming on board with Upstream was to create an MLS Advisory Council to bounce ideas off of and create a channel of communication. He did not cherry pick our ‘friends’ so to speak, rather he engaged a cross section of all types of MLS’s and MLS executives. It is out of that group’s advice and counsel and the Upstream Board’s desire to bring everyone back together, that the second option (MLS input first) was born and which has been very well received. Some have said this is where Upstream should have started to begin with and that its name now belies its mission and brokers original intent. The NAR learning moment was and is to remember to listen more closely to the Brokers and MLS executives. When the Brokerage Community perceived an intractability could anyone blame them for wanting to reclaim the fundamental principle of owning and controlling their listing data. By the same token, some MLS’s understood this perception and were open to providing solutions to the Brokers frustrations.

Which brings us to why the heck did we get into this whole Upstream deal when we did? Among the strategic reasons none was more basic than demonstrating to the Brokers of this country that we still believed in them and what they represent. Yes, it’s as simple as that. They needed us and we responded. I shudder to think what organized real estate would look like without the Broker as its backbone.

And now we are post Midyear Meetings and the subsequent vote by the NAR Board of Directors to further invest in the future and potential of an RPR/Upstream/MLS Partnership. It is my belief that the vote (649-93) was far more prescient and strategic in its intent than just funding the Upstream alternative. I believe the Board of Directors was sending a strong signal that they like it when all the parties are cooperating and working together for one key purpose – to help them! I think they’d like to see much more of a focus by all of us to come together to serve them better.

Some of you may have missed this signal or dismissed it as yet another attempt on NAR’s part to interfere or intrude itself into space in which it does not belong. Or you may have spent some time commiserating about what was accurately reported as my ‘cartel’ comment. Unfortunately, what was conveniently omitted was what I said right before that, which was:

“THERE ARE SOME FANTASTIC VENDORS AND EVEN MORE FANTASTIC MLS’s OUT THERE THAT DO AN UNBELIEVABLE JOB, THEY ARE NOT THE PROBLEM!”

….. followed by applause from the NAR Board of Directors.

Then, after the Midyear Meetings, I listened to a couple of excellent online interviews; one covering the events at the Midyear meeting and one which occurred shortly thereafter. I can’t say I liked everything they discussed nor do I agree with all of their conclusions, but they were even handed, and generally fair in their observations about the ‘pivot’ to option B and other NAR activities. What’s the saying …. ‘if you can’t take the heat’.

So where are we now? Alex Lange reports that he is being warmly received by MLS executives who are anxious to engage in the Option B implementation process as evidenced by a strong desire to discuss an LOI with Upstream. Alex indicates there are even some large MLS executives who want to bypass the LOI process and get things going by moving straight to a contractual and implementation process.

Additionally, MLS executives are not sitting on their hands. They are forcing speedier creation and adoption of a true RESO API. They are talking merger/consolidation like never before. (Hats off to BrightMLS and a number of others). Some particularly entrepreneurial folks have introduced the ‘BROKER PUBLIC PORTAL’ and ‘THE GRID’ to the MLS community and they’re putting their money where their mouth is. As previously mentioned, CMLS has blossomed as a force for cooperation and ideation. MLS data sharing is happening all over the place. Some MLS vendors are really stepping up with some state-of-the-art products, particularly focusing on MLS front ends. FBS and CloudMLX are just a couple of examples of high quality vendors pushing the envelope.

In the meantime, the Brokers are excited about seeing forward movement and progress via Upstream. They do not feel beaten or that they ‘lost the first round’ as some have said. They are first and foremost entrepreneurs, they are used to revising their business plans over and over again and moving on. Mostly they are optimistic about a renewed sense of collaboration within our B to B communities.

This is good news indeed! The Brokers are ready to cooperate. NAR/RPR is ready to cooperate. The MLS’s are ready to cooperate. Surely, many more good things can be visioned and built on this foundation of like-minded people all focused on delivering value and supporting our members business interests.

So I finish with this; which if it’s true nothing can stop us from sustaining our shared mission to successfully serve our members – Just tell me you still believe in REALTORS® and what they represent. Tell me you still buy-in to the ‘trusted advisors’ that make dreams come true every day. I believe in them and always have. If you do too, then let’s begin anew and create an even stronger B to B platform together which benefits everyone but not at the sacrifice of anyone.

Last week, nearly 9600 Realtors®came to Washington to make our voices heard on protecting homeownership. If you haven’t had the chance to come to one of our national conferences, you are really missing out! It’s tremendous to see so many Realtors®come to Washington, D.C. from all over the country ready to learn the latest on what’s happening in our industry and to connect with other Realtors®.

Let me give you a few of the highlights:

The Board of Directors (BOD) meet to take action on important NAR business

The Board voted by overwhelming support—an 85 percent majority—to support Upstream technology and improving the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) experience. Earlier in the week, UpstreamRE announced a new “broker of choice” model, which will enable listing data to be input directly into Upstream or flow to Upstream from the MLS. This will benefit small brokerages because they aren’t able to build a platform the way large brokerages can, and it will allow all brokerages greater control over their data.

Recognizing that homeownership is the foundation of wealth for most American families he said, “We need to make sure that everybody has a chance to become a homeowner.

Realtors® met with Members of Congress and regulators at the Federal Aviation Administration, Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Department of Treasury and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. We delivered our message on national flood insurance, tax reform, and sustainable homeownership.

Our members urged Congress to pass a multiyear reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program before it expires on September 30. We also reminded legislators that while Realtors® support a fairer and simpler tax code, it cannot happen by diminishing the real estate tax provisions that are crucial to a vibrant housing market and are a key driver of the economy. President Bill Brown punctuated his remarks at 360 with a few inspiring words. He said tax reform, “shouldn’t come at the expense of current and prospective homeowners.”

Realtors® also want to protect sustainable homeownership by advocating for responsible reform of the secondary mortgage market, prohibiting the use of mortgage guarantee fees for any purposes other than credit-risk management, and improving consumer protections for energy efficiency improvement loans.

On the business side, NAR’s strategic investment arm, Second Century Ventures, added seven organizations to its 2017 class of REach®, which encourages the growth of new technology companies into the real estate, financial services, banking, home services and insurance industries. Two more were announced during the conference. They include Adwerx, a digital advertising provider and immoviewer, a 3-D virtual tour technology company.

NAR’s REALTOR Benefits® Partner Placester is offering free websites to all Realtors®. Last year, Realtors® spent a median of $70 maintaining a website. To help reduce business costs, Placester, a real estate website and marketing platform, is extending its partnership with us to provide a basic “NAR Edition” website to the association’s 1.2 million members at no charge. NAR members will also receive discounts on advanced website features and products.

President Bill ended his remarks at 360 by quoting Oakland Raiders coach Al Davis, telling us, “Just win, baby!” That’s how we will protect homeownership, consumers and the future of the real estate industry we love. Hope to see you all in Chicago, November 3-6, at the 2017 Realtors Conference & Expo!

Tax reform, mortgage interest deduction, rent control and tax on services are just a few of the public policy issues that REALTORS are facing on a national, state and local level. Now more than ever, we need our members engaged in advocacy, educated on our issues and ready to take action at a moments’ notice.

To highlight the importance of advocacy, the National Association of REALTORS encourages you to celebrate your advocacy outreach efforts throughout three full weeks of May—or REALTOR Advocacy Month. Each week is designated to highlight Vote, Act and Invest advocacy outreach activities. Participating is as easy as 1, 2, 3:

1. Engage your members in weekly activities OR promote activities conducted or to be held in 2017.

2. Post photos and videos to your websites, in newsletters or on your social media pages using the hashtag #REALTORParty. Tag the REALTOR Party on Facebook and Twitter in any posts.

Visit the REALTOR Advocacy Month website to learn more about how your association can get involved, find information on each weekly theme and suggested activities, social media graphics and other REALTOR Party resources and the activity submission form at www.realtoractioncenter.com/realtoradvocacy.

For more information on REALTOR Advocacy Month, please contact NAR at realtorparty@realtors.org or 202-383-1000.

]]>http://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2017/04/25/youre-invited-join-us-in-celebrating-the-realtor-party-this-may/feed/0Beat Bill Brown’s Bracket: And Then There Were 16http://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2017/03/23/beat-bill-browns-bracket-and-then-there-were-16/
http://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2017/03/23/beat-bill-browns-bracket-and-then-there-were-16/#commentsThu, 23 Mar 2017 13:44:22 +0000http://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/?p=4090Well, we certainly had a wild, wacky, and wonderful first weekend of the NCAA Basketball Championships, now didn’t we? After the dust settled, only sixteen teams remained to vie for the men’s and women’s national championship. Seems like a good time to check in on Bill Brown’s Brackets. (and for you to see if you are indeed beating those brackets!)

Men’s Bracket Leaders – Seven entries are tied for first, with two more right on their heels. Bill Brown’s Bracket? Currently sitting 30th.

Women’s Bracket Leaders – Bill Brown’s Bracket sits atop the standings, with a slim lead over the second place entry.

Remember to use the hashtag #BillsBrackets as you follow along with the bracket fun on social media.

In the words of one of one of rock’s greatest hits, we didn’t mean to cause a big sensation…but NAR recently released its 2017 Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends study.This is fascinating research, not only because generation trends impact home buying activity, but because there’s been plenty of angst about the Millennial Generation and whether they will enter the home market at the same rate as previous generations.

Those fears were pretty well abated by the survey.Millennial buyers, at 85 percent, were the most likely generation to view their home purchase as a good financial investment.As parents of young children, they’re prioritizing affordability and looking to buy homes in the suburbs.

There was also good news about Generation X.This was the generation who bought their first home, started a family and were mid-career when the Great Recession wreaked havoc on their finances.Many of them bought at the peak of the market and didn’t necessarily develop a great deal of equity in their home. On top of that, they carry the most student loan debt—an average of $30,000.

Finally, the stronger job market and 41 percent cumulative rise in home prices since 2011 have bolstered home equities.That, plus a growing job market, has created enough equity that more homeowners can now trade up to a larger home.

My own generation, believe it or not, is also held back by student debt.The report showed that student loans delayed saving for a down payment or a home purchase for people as old as 62 to 70.Much of this is debt taken on to support family members, but many older individuals have also decided to go back to school themselves.

I was thrilled to see that the survey also said that, while they go online to shop, millennial and Gen X buyers and sellers overwhelmingly use a real estate agent to complete their transaction.

In fact, 90 percent of respondents said they worked with a real estate agent to buy or sell a home.This resulted in the lowest number of for-sale-by-owner transactions ever at 8 percent, which means there’s no danger that the Realtor®-consumer relationship will fade away any time soon.

To the contrary, this vital generational information can help us be more successful in our businesses as we work to meet the needs of consumers of all different ages.It’s all groovy, baby!

]]>http://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2017/03/15/generation/feed/0Beat Bill Brown’s Bracketshttp://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2017/03/15/beat-bill-browns-brackets/
http://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2017/03/15/beat-bill-browns-brackets/#commentsWed, 15 Mar 2017 14:14:58 +0000http://voicesofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/?p=4057The NCAA Basketball Championships are upon us, and NAR President Bill Brown has caught bracket fever. Think you’ve got the prognostication chops to top NAR’s President? Then head to the links below to make yourpicks, for both the Men’s and Women’s 2017 NCAA Tournament Brackets.

To enter either Tournament Challenge group, click “Create a Bracket Now”. If you do not already have an ESPN.com account, you’ll be asked to create one. You’ll have a bracket completed in less time than it took me to write this post.

Be sure to get your brackets filled out by noon ET this Thursday, the 16th. Winner earns…bragging rights for a year!

I was a “spirited” child growing up. Perhaps my family would choose a different adjective… let’s just say I had a lot of energy. However, in 1963, when I was eleven years old, either I got my act together, or Santa Claus turned a blind eye, because that year for Christmas I received the ultimate present – a 6-string Gibson guitar.

This wasn’t just a guitar; it was a work of art. Not only did it look smooth with its hand-buffed and high-gloss wood finish, but, put in the right hands, I thought that this 6-string guitar could sound like no other. This was a rock star’s guitar− many rock legends played either Gibson or Fender.

I imagine the exhilaration I felt that Christmas morning, holding the guitar in my adolescent hands, was on par with how John Lennon felt the first time the Beatles walked on stage to play the Ed Sullivan Show. Simply put, Christmas morning 1963 was pure magic!

While no Christmas gift has ever, or will ever, compare, the holiday season remains a magical time for me. As REALTORS®, we enjoy the greatest profession, but there is a tradeoff − we work tirelessly all year long. For most of our members, weekends and evenings are often spent with clients, and not at home with our loved ones. Thankfully, my wife, Heather, is more than understanding; she too is a REALTOR®.

In the Brown household the holiday season brings a welcomed lull. Our cell phones aren’t ringing, there are very few e-mails to return, and for a few brief but magical days, we spend time hunkered down in our own home, enjoying the peace that accompanies this special time of year.

Memories of my 6-string Gibson guitar still bring great joy, but these days, holiday magic is not found in a wrapped present under the tree. Instead, it’s about spending time with those that matter the most.

On behalf of the National Association of REALTORS® 2017 Leadership Team, I wish you and your loved ones a peaceful holiday season and a happy and healthy year ahead.

Chris’ tremendous accomplishments as the 2015 NAR President were highlighted during the 23rd annual Walton Awards Banquet on Thursday, April 14, at the Fayetteville Town Center. The Award is presented annually to an exceptional and accomplished Walton alum. Past recipients include William T. Dillard, Sr., founder of the Dillard’s Department Stores chain, and Jerry Jones, owner, president, and general manager of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.

Chris received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in marketing from the Walton College in 1967.

This time last year, everyone in our industry was talking about the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule. Also known as “Know Before You Owe,” the new rule meant new forms were coming to consumers – and with them, big changes to the mortgage process.

The idea was to make financing a home more transparent for consumers, aiding comparison shopping and preventing surprises at the closing table.

Now six months into implementation, the industry is moving forward. There are still challenges to address, with Realtors® reporting some delayed and a few even cancelled transactions. That’s no surprise, and NAR said from the beginning that there would be bumps in the road and we continue to work with the CFPB to provide additional clarity in order to smooth out those bumps

But more and more we’re also hearing from brokers and agents who see “Know Before You Owe” rules putting consumers in the driver’s seat and helping avoid problems at the closing table. In an op-ed at Banker and Tradesman, broker/owner Anthony Lamacchia had this to say:

“While the extra time has certainly helped alleviate closing delays, the real reason is that, due to TRID, everyone is working together in a more proactive fashion. It had a trickledown effect; Realtors have been asked to negotiate longer closing dates, buyers are reminded more often to get their mortgage brokers what they want, when they want it. Real estate attorneys are contacting each other sooner and working together by pulling title earlier and doing whatever they can to be prepared for closing. Buyers seeing their numbers earlier has prevented last-minute freak-outs and fire drills, which in turn decreases closing delays. Now when there is a problem or a question, it is worked out days in advance instead of the morning of or even at the closing.”

That’s the kind of optimism and can-do spirit that I like to see as the industry continues to adjust.

We know there will continue to be short-term challenges, but the average consumer doesn’t spend their time thinking about regulatory constraints the way we do. They simply want a smooth ride on the road to homeownership.

As an industry, we have the tools and the talent to deliver. As professionals, that’s what we do.